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Saturday, May 7, 2016

So I haven’t posted anything in quite a while. I try to wait
until I really have something to write about as I know not many people are
interested in the classic race report. There are a million of them, and
eventually people will begin to just scroll by.

I’ll
start off by saying the last few weeks have been very hard. We’ll pick this up
with my race in Chengdu, China three weeks ago. I was coming off of Abu Dhabi
and Mooloolaba, great learning experiences, but at the end of the day, poor
performances for me. During the week leading up to Chengdu, I had a great run
on Wednesday. Not breaking any records, but solid and comfortable. After the
run my foot was sore. By nighttime it was difficult to walk. Having never had
any pain in it before, I assued I just tweaked some soft tissue and it’d be
fine. By Saturday, race day, it had gotten much better and I really didn’t feel
a need to be too concerned.

I got
ready to race and we were off. There was a long run out of the water and the
foot felt fine. The bike went fine, and then about 800m into the run I felt
something pop. Sure it was painful, but at that time you’re just so ready for
pain. After a few strides it seemed to basically go away for the most part, so
I figured I tweaked something but was fine. I soldiered on, and was closing
well, only a few seconds behind 2nd until it all seemed to go away
from me. All in all, I ended up in 19th, a disappointment for me.

My foot
tightened up by nighttime until I couldn’t walk. Traveling back from China
without really being able to walk was an awful experience, but you have to do
what you have to do. In the few days I had to wait until seeing the doctor, it
started to feel way better. I was feeling less and less concerned. I had a race
coming up in Richmond where I’d also make a trip home, and I was confident I’d
be going. It turns out the x-ray felt differently. I looked at it in amazement
as my 3rd metatarsal had snapped pretty good. I guess that pop I
felt running was in fact my bone snapping. I’m not sure about you, but that
makes me a little queasy. The best course of action was to surgically repair it
by moving it back into place and putting a plate on top. At this point the
surgery was about a week and a half ago. Obviously it wasn’t fun. I woke up
from it in pretty extreme pain and remember the doctor just injecting me with
more pain meds. The next time I woke up a great friend who I really have to
thank a lot, Paula Findlay, was there by the side of the bed. She took me home
and really took care of me that night. Sometimes I feel really far from home,
but then I’m reminded of some of the great people that I have around me. I have
had a lot of support from friends and family here in Boulder and also back
home. I’ve got a lot of help.

But
back to how this all really sucks. Unfortunately, at my level, you don’t really
have much money coming in. I lifeguard to try to get enough money to get by.
Now I can’t do anything. The actual meaning that I can’t afford to be hurt. So
now I’m just freaking out trying to figure out what to do. It’s also possible
that I could miss the chance to qualify for U23 Worlds, the main goal of this
season. So there are definitely a lot of hopeless feelings going on at this
point. Not many good thoughts spiraling through my mind. Sometimes life gives
you lemons, and you can make lemonade. Well, other times it just kicks you in
the nuts, and there’s nothing you can do but try not to throw up. I wish it was
nothing but a hurt foot, but it seems to affect everything, and it sure doesn’t
feel good.

All
I can do now is look forward. Back in the water next week, and hopefully
starting the run progression back in mid-June. Everything really seems to suck,
but at the end of it all, there is no reason the last third of my season can’t
go really well. I’m knocked out here in the middle, but I’m confident that I can
be better than ever at the end of the season. I started this year with the goal
of winning U23 World Championships. That remains my goal. September is a long
way from now. I will do everything I can to get on the start line and be ready
to win that race. For now, I’ll work on all of my weaknesses that I can, spend
lots of time on the Vasa, and catch up on my Netflix binging. I’m excited to
get healthy and be back full force to have a successful end to the year.